Religious education review ordered

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta

President Megawati Soekarnoputri has instructed the Ministry of Religious Affairs to review the teaching of religion in schools, saying that in some cases it has encouraged militancy among the students.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the national meeting of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, the President said religious instruction should be carefully monitored as in the end it would threaten national unity.

"We have to ensure that the teachings we provide will not produce new believers that would go to any lengths to defend their religion," the President said.

Megawati did not identify specific schools, but Muslim religious leaders have said that several convicted terrorists were graduates of pesantren (Islamic boarding schools). Some bombers, including those responsible for the bombing in Bali and Jakarta's JW Marriott Hotel, are graduates of Ngruki boarding school in Central Java. Although Indonesia has a clear policy against terrorism, it has done little to examine the curriculum of such boarding schools.

This is for the first time Megawati has addressed the issue of militancy in the world's most populous Muslim country, although her administration has been tough on terrorist groups.

"The militancy encouraged by certain teachings had propounded the idea of eliminating those with different beliefs," the President said.

She said that the Ministry of Religious Affairs should immediately look into the issue.

Minister of Religious Affairs Said Agil Al-Munawar agreed with the President saying that the presence of radical boarding schools in the country should be carefully watched.

However, he said that these group did not have traditional roots and were mostly formed through outside influence.

"Our people remain known as tolerant and moderate people. This is because there are too many outside influences on these schools," he remarked.

Megawati said that the schools should make sure that the students understood the real value of religion and ethics through education.

"We all see how religious teachings have nurtured fanaticism -- although not all. It also has nurtured hostility toward those who do not share the same beliefs," Megawati said.

She warned this would strain tolerance among the Indonesian people and ultimately threaten national unity.

"The teaching of religion in schools should be reviewed and thoroughly assessed," she asserted.

Religious teaching is compulsory in Indonesia from elementary schools to university, and boarding schools that focus on religious doctrine are also common.

However, the recent string of terrorist attacks by Muslim militants, who are graduates of Islamic boarding schools have revealed they bitter truth that religious teachings can be dangerous.

Religious fanaticism has also provoked prolonged sectarian clashes in some parts of the country in recent years.